Big Boys

The Big Boy tomatoes are finally ripening and we must get them picked soon as the rains have begun and Fall is definitely in the air. I picked a dozen or so of these big red beauties today and shared some of the harvest with the nice neighbor lady next door along with some basil. With the rest I decided to try my hand at a stuffed tomato to go along with tonight's pasta dinner.

I recently read this recipe and thought it sounded interesting and the nice thing was that I had all of the ingredients in my cupboards so didn't need to make a trip out for anything. It was extremely easy to put together and as it was cooking for 75 minutes, the house was filled with the perfume of garlic and onions. After cooking, they weren't the most attractive dish I've ever seen, but they are extremely flavorful and a great way to use ripe, big tomatoes from your garden or the farmers market. Give it a try.

Risotto Filled Baked Tomatoes

4 large tomatoes

1/2 cup yellow onions finely diced

1 finely minced garlic clove

Olive oil (Approximately 3 Tbsp)

1/2 cup Arborio rice

1/3 cup water

5 fresh basil leaves

salt

Seasoned bread crumbs

2 Tbsp finely grated Parmesan cheese

2 medium Yukon gold potatoes, sliced into 1/4 inch thick rounds

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Cut the tops off of the tomatoes and gently scoop out their insides, flesh, seeds and juice and put in a bowl. Chop up any of the bigger tomato flesh. Set the hollowed out tomatoes into a lightly greased baking dish.

In a medium saucepan over medium heat, warm up 2 Tbsp olive oil. Add the onions and cook until translucent. Add the garlic and saute a few seconds until you can smell it. Add the rice and saute for 2 minutes. Add the tomato juice, flesh and water and the basil leaves torn into small pieces and a pinch of salt. Stir. Reduce the heat slightly, cover the pot and simmer for 10 minutes.Spoon the rice mixture into the tomato shells. Top with a generous sprinkling of breadcrumbs and Parmesan cheese which have been mixed together. Arrange the potato slices around the tomatoes. Sprinkle everything with olive oil, making sure the potatoes are well coated on both sides. Bake for 1 hour and 15 minutes. Cook for 15 minutes to allow the juices to settle then serve.